Last weekend I attended the annual Pantheacon conference in San Jose, California. It was a wonderful weekend filled with knowledge, kinship and connection. I enjoyed attending many classes, rituals and workshops. One of the classes I attended was Mary Greer’s, “Who are you in the Tarot?” In the class, she lined out how to find your own personal cards through a numerology approach and process which she lines out in her new book, Who Are You in the Tarot?  I found out that I had 3 cards. One of them was the Judgement card. We then broke up into groups with people that had the same numbers and cards to discuss personality traits we had in common. While in group, I had difficulty connecting with the Judgement card. Beyond the fact that I felt that I could sometimes be judgmental, I couldn’t see how it related to me. The class was a wonderful enriching experience, and I always enjoy Mary Greer’s very knowledgeable presentations, and I came away knowing that I had a little work to do. Little did I know that the work would come to me!  The next day I was standing in line for coffee and a woman turned around to speak with me. She seemed a bit socially awkward. I was polite, but did not really want to engage her. She told me she had books coming out and I congratulated her, and when my friend walked by, my entire focus shifted. I politely wished her a good day and took my coffee and left. Later, I saw her in the shopping area signing her book. Being a bit surprised, I asked, “Is that your book?” She replied that it was and offered me a bookmark. I thanked her and wished her luck. I had felt a little badly that I had not taken her seriously before, while in line for coffee. And walking away, the Judgement card suddenly began to make sense. Later, I looked up the meaning. Some of the traditional meanings include: awakening, intelligence, opinion, determination of a matter and atonement. In her book, Tarot Reversals, Mary Greer gives some possible definitions as, “…you may find yourself at a crossroads where you have an epiphany or revelation that creates deep significant change. …Perhaps you receive a wake up call from your own conscience, giving you the chance to atone for past sins or errors in judgement. You may do a personal inventory or self-evaluation….Alternatively,  you might be cultivating good judgement by using all your faculties in a mature, integrated manor.”

That weekend, I made a deep connection with the Judgement card. I know that sometimes we can be judgmental. That is not always a bad thing. If you have a job that requires you to make quick decisions that effect others, you need to be able to make judgement calls. Judgement is also needed in situations where you need to keep safe. Its  knowing when to turn it off that can be tricky. I did not have to engage with the woman in line with me for coffee. But it probably would have been a better experience for both of us if I had.

Now I think of the Judgement card as epiphany. Is there something I need to see or wake up to in a situation. Is there something I am missing because I am letting my opinion or belief get in the way? And how can I make the best choices in a situation so there won’t be anything to atone for? Maybe I need to make a judgement call. Maybe the safety of others depends on it. But whatever I am looking at, I know that I am responsible for putting that trumpet up to my lips and making that call, or knowing when to answer it when heard.